About BMSC Credentials

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Why Get Credentialed?            

Identify yourself as a leader and gain respect in your medical coding or clinical profession by becoming certified by the Board of Medical Specialty Coding & Compliance. Advanced certification produces higher salaries for medical coders and will help you work more effectively within your industry.

Raise the bar for excellence!

AHCC's BMSC credentials show you meet the gold standard of knowledge in home care. Position yourself or your organization as an industry leader with a reputation for excellence.

Candidate Handbook

The BMSC Candidate Handbook includes important information you should know before sitting for an AHCC exam.

Candidate Handbook

BMSC Credentials Include:

Home Care Coding Specialist - Diagnosis (HCS-D) 

The Home Care Coding Specialist—Diagnosis (HCS-D) credential is earned by professionals skilled in classifying medical data from home health patient records. Coding specialists review patients' records and assign numeric codes for each diagnosis. Successful HCS-D candidates will possess expertise in the application of ICD-10-CM conventions and guidelines and should be knowledgeable in medical terminology, anatomy/physiology, disease processes, pathophysiology, and pharmacology.

HCS-D certified coders are considered leaders in the industry because they:

• Conduct documentation reconcilliation
• Assign accurate diagnosis codes
• Collaborate with clinicians, physicians and/or managers/administrators
• Ensure that all activities are done in a legal and ethical manner that supports home health agency policy, regulatory and professional guidelines

Home Care Coding Specialist - Hospice (HCS-H) 

The Home Care Coding Specialist-Hospice (HCS-H) credential is earned by professionals skilled in classifying medical data from hospice patient records. Coding specialists review patients' records and assign numeric codes for each diagnosis. Successful HCS-H candidates will possess expertise in the application of ICD-10-CM conventions and guidelines and should be knowledgeable in medical terminology, anatomy/physiology, disease processes, pathophysiology, and pharmacology.

HCS-H certified coders are considered leaders in the industry because they:

• Conduct documentation reconcilliation
• Assign accurate diagnosis codes
• Collaborate with clinicians, physicians and/or managers/administrators
• Ensure that all activities are done in a legal and ethical manner that supports hospice agency policy, regulatory and professional guidelines

Home Care Clinical Specialist - OASIS (HCS-O)

The Home Care Clinical Specialist – OASIS (HCS-O) certification is held by clinicians who have demonstrated the clinical skills and judgment necessary to assess a patient’s condition correctly. HCS-O credential holders are healthcare professionals with specialized knowledge in applying clinical assessment findings to OASIS items. HCS-O credential holders include Registered Nurses, Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Speech Language Pathologists, Coding Specialists, Billing Specialists, Compliance Directors, Quality Assurance Directors, Administrators, and Agency Directors. Although these individuals perform different jobs, the role of ensuring the accuracy of OASIS data is the same for all of them. To effectively ensure the accuracy of OASIS data, they must understand and apply the instructions contained in the OASIS Guidance Manual, category- specific questions and answers, and quarterly updates provided by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

Clinicians with an HCS-O credential know how to:

• Gather patient clinical documentation
• Validate the accuracy of OASIS responses
• Correct OASIS response errors according to OASIS guidance and documentation standards
• Ensure that all activities are done in a legal and ethical manner that supports agency policy and regulatory and professional guidelines